Virginia Shooting: 2 Killed, 1 Injured During Live TV News Broadcast

Unbelievable. According to WDBJ7, two of their own employees were shot to death this morning during a live broadcast around 6:45 a.m. in Moneta, Virginia. Reporter Alison Parker, 24, and photographer Adam Ward, 27, were killed. Vicki Gardner of the Smith Mountain Lake Regional Chamber of Commerce was injured in the shooting and was said to be in surgery.

Details are still coming in, but see below for a photo of the suspected shooter, who is reportedly a "disgruntled" former station employee with grievances against Adam and Alison. According to WHSV, the Augusta County Sheriff's Department identified the suspect as Vester Lee Flanagan, but on air he went by Bryce Williams. WHSV later updated that Flanagan had shot himself and was in critical condition. Not too long after that, the news came in that the alleged gunman had died.

This is the most heartbreaking part of an already heartbreaking tragedy: Both of the slain young journalists had new reasons to be excited about their futures, with Adam engaged and Alison starting a relationship with WDBJ anchor Chris Hurst. Chris tweeted his sorrow and shared their love story:

Keep an eye on them for more. Our deepest condolences to the families, and viewers who are also traumatized by what happened. It's hard to imagine how this can be explained, but it's relaunching debates on how future gun violence can be prevented.